"As owners, we need to say to ourselves. `There are heartbreaks in each one of those people's lives that come through those doors.' One may be threatened with a divorce, one may have a child that is mentally retarded or handicapped in some way, or a mother who's dying of cancer. So there has to be a lot of latitude for the people part of a business. "

• Listen to your customers and they will tell you what they want to buy .
• Employees are your most valuable asset.
• Build your business before you expand your personal lifestyle.

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• BUSINESS BASICS: Businessman, Abe Bernstein, tells us how to get a banker to say "Yes," and Rick Frisbee, managing partner of Battery Ventures, introduces us to venture capital and provides an overview of an initial public offering.
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• OTHER SEGMENTS IN THE SHOW. We turned to several other small business owners who have become leaders in their field; they give us some tips in these segments:
  • Deliver the Message,
  • You're Wired,
  • Streetfighter Marketing, and
  • Law Talk.
• FOUR STEPS TO START AND FOUR TO GROW.
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